Broken
by CucumberPickles
Summary: Meet Max The optimistic, hyper, happygolucky member of the Bladebreakers. It never occured to any of the other members that Max may not be all that happy...
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: This will be the ONLY disclaimer for this story, so… I do NOT own anything related to Beyblade.

IMPORTANT: This is my first Beyblade fanfic; so if you think that I need improving on something, please let me know.

* * *

" But, Mommy! I don't want to go!" Small hands struggled to get out of the clutches of Judy Tate. " I hate the dentist!"

" Max, I already made the appointment… Tell you what, I'll buy you some ice-cream on the way home." Judy said as she rushed her son through New York City.

" Really?! Do you promise?"

" I promise."

" Pinky promise me," Max said as he showed his mom his free hand.

Judy sighed before stopping in front of a large building. Kneeling down to her son's eye level, she stuck her pinky out in front of her son. Smiling brightly, Max linked his pinky with his mom's and made sure to seal the promise by touching her thumb with his thumb. Satisfied with the freshly made promise, the small blonde gurgled cheerfully before hugging his mom.

Judy smiled and held her son for a while; it was hard to come by these 'special moments' with her son these days as she recently started working again in the BBA. After a minute or so, Judy stood up and straightened her skirt out. Taking hold of Max's hand once more, she led her son into the building.

* * *

" So! That wasn't so bad, was it?" Dr. Mirshiren said as she helped Max gurgle. Handing a cotton ball to Max, she told Max to keep it in his mouth until the bleeding stopped.

" Thur shoo," Max managed to mumble through cotton balls and blood. Dr. Mirshiren smiled back at Max's attempted _thank you_ and helped him off the large dentist chair. Guiding him through the dentist building back to the lobby where Judy was waiting, Dr. Mirshiren explained to Max on how he can take care of his teeth more effectively. Max nodded every now and then to acknowledge that he was listening, but once he saw his mom, he broke into a run.

" MOMMY!!!!"

Judy looked up from her newspaper to be horrified with the sight of Max with a wide, bloody smile.

" Mommy, look! I have and empty space in between my teeth now!" Max showed his mom by opening his mouth even wider. Judy, who was never excited by the sight of blood, winced before giving Max a feeble smile.

" That's… very nice, Max."

" Hee," Max grinned as he leaned on his mom's arm. Judy didn't notice anything other than the blood mixed with saliva starting to drool out of his mouth and drip onto her white blouse.

Dr. Mirshiren noticing Judy's discomfort, quickly led Max back into a separate room where she gave him another cup of water and a few more cotton balls. Max gave her his thanks again before running back to his mom.

Judy had finished paying for Max's dentist bill and now extended her hand towards Max. Max took it eagerly and grinned wildly at his mom.

" Ice-cream!" He reminded his mom as they walked out of the building. Laughing, Judy kissed her son on his forehead.

" How could I ever forget?" Dr. Mirshiren heard Judy say as the large glass doors swung shut.

" Did you have to do that?" A nurse asked Dr. Mirshiren as she handed a clipboard to her.

The doctor smiled sadly before answering, " I had to do it… A patient had cursed me with this death mark… It's only right that I give a patient the same curse… It's only a matter of months or even years before they realize what's happening… Soon, it won't be ice-cream he's asking for, it'll be something more…"

…10 years later…

" _LET IT RIP!"_

Sounds of metal clashing against metal were heard throughout Tyson's dojo. The Bladebreakers had been training nearly the whole day and the sky was quickly becoming dark. A single blade hit the ground dully as it was thrown from the dish. A blond figure bent over to pick the blade up.

" That's enough for today," Hiro said to the others as he walked into the building.

" That was a good battle, Max," Tyson said as he punched Max in the shoulder. Max smiled before doing the same. Tyson grinned wildly back at Max before running in after Daichi into the dojo.

Once everyone had gone inside, Max's smile fell from his face as he sighed and sat down. When his alarm on his watch went off, Max automatically reached into his pocket and pulled out a small tube of pills. Popping one into his mouth, he forced it down his throat with a sip from a water bottle.

" When are you going to tell everyone else?" A voice behind him suddenly said.

Max didn't look up but slid the tube of pills back into his pocket. " Kai…You didn't tell anyone, did you?"

Kai walked out from the shadows of the building and stood slightly away from Max. " No… But if the others are going to get hurt, I'll be forced to tell."

Max nodded before standing up and stretching his limbs. Looking over to where Kai was standing, Max wasn't surprised to see that Kai wasn't there anymore. Max sighed and walked into the building.

* * *

" Max. Max! MAX!"

" Huh?!" Max sat up, shivering in cold sweat. Looking to the side of him, he noticed Rei with a cold towel sitting beside him.

" Are you okay? I woke up to see you shivering and sweating like you weren't feeling too good," Rei's golden eyes seem to glow even more in the dimly moon-lit room.

" I'm okay… Just a nightmare…" Max wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. Rei handed Max the towel and Max accepted gratefully.

" Well… Tell me if you need anything," Rei muttered drowsily as he crawled back under his sheets.

" Yeah…"

Max sat there for a while, looking at the damp sheets and towel surrounding him. A wistful smile spread slowly across his face. For a moment, Max stared at his hands under the beam of the moonlight coming in from the windows before laying back down. Max sighed, his chest rising ever so slightly. Shivering in his still slightly-damp clothes, he rolled over onto his side and thought back to when it all started…

* * *

" I'm sorry, Max. Your blood tests prove that you are- "

* * *

Max squeezed his eyes shut, telling himself to forget that day. To forget the doctor ever told him he was diagnosed with- no. He won't say it. He won't say the word. Saying it would be like admitting to him that he was a patient diagnosed with – there it goes again. It was controlling him, his life. Everything he did, everything he thought, and it was involved. He couldn't do anything now without…

Max opened his eyes. He felt hatred rising in his body as he thought of all those other people who were allowed to go along with their normal lives. It wasn't fair. I t wasn't fair that he had – had to be like this. It wasn't fair that he had to die while everyone else continued on living. It just wasn't fair.

Max sat up suddenly as he realized something. He doesn't have to die alone. If he wanted, he wouldn't be the only one doomed with death. If he wanted, Rei and Kai and Tyson and Kenny and Hiro… They could all die with him.

A sudden wave of exhaustion washed over him just then and he shuddered as he fell back down. He lay there, shivering as he thought over his most recent feelings. No, he shook his head. That couldn't have been him. He would never think such horrid stuff towards his friends. He was Max, wasn't he? Optimistic, hyper, happy-go-lucky member of the Bladebreakers…

Max sighed and another wave of exhaustion washed him over as he reached over and pulled his now dry sheets over himself.

* * *

Well… There's the first chapter… If you detect any mistakes or if you feel that my writing is missing something somewhere, I would appreciate it very much if you would tell me. 


	2. Blood and Broken Glass

Here's the second chapter... I had someone check it for me, but she told me that there were probably other mistakes still in here. I would appreciate it if I was told of any errors made in this fanfiction.

* * *

" You on a diet, Max?"

Max was shocked at Hiro's random question. " What ever makes you think that?"

" Geez… I don't know… Maybe the fact that you're suddenly skinny as a twig?" Tyson glanced over at Max while steadying his launcher.

" Tyson's right," Rei said as he got ready to launch his blade as well. " Are you sure you aren't sick?"

" I'm fine," Max forced a smile onto his face. A smile that he others accepted and were fooled into thinking that there was nothing wrong with him. Max smiled even more, hoping that no one will see past his false person to his true nature. Max shuddered as he thought of the consequences if anybody else other than Kai had found out the truth.

" You cold, Max?"

" What! Oh…no. I was just thinking… Hey, Kenny."

" Yeah?"

" What would you do if someone you knew was-had a disease?"

" Is it contagious?"

" Kind of…"

" I'd stay away from him, why?"

" No particular reason," Max felt the blood drain from his face. He couldn't let anyone find out. If they did, they would probably avoid him at all costs. But then… If they didn't know, there would be a chance that the others might get-might become like him.

Max launched his blade into the dish and prepared to face off Daichi. Why can't they become like him? If everyone else was-was infected already and if everyone was going to die just like him, then he wouldn't have to be afraid. He wouldn't have to be afraid that the others would find out because they'll be just like him.

Max pondered over this as his battle with Daichi ended in a tie. Would it be any different, though? If he somehow managed to make the others like him… They'd probably hate him even more for destroying their lives and leaving them with certain death. They'd probably hate him more than him hating that-that_ dentist_. But… What if he somehow got them infected and they never found out that he did it?

Kai would probably tell them, though… How unfortunate that Kai found out… If he hadn't, Max could most likely infect everyone easily. All he would have to do is infect one person and everything will spread like a computer virus. They won't know what's happening unless it's too late…

" Good battle, Max. Daichi, you'll have to practice your defense…"

Max put on another false smile and tried joking around with Tyson. Max smiled to himself… He could become an actor if he wanted, Tyson didn't notice that anything was wrong with Max. Tyson didn't know that Max wasn't the same person that Tyson had known when they had beybladed together at the world championships a few years ago… But then again, Kai had found out everything.

Max silently cursed Kai for making everything harder for him. Knowing that Kai knew… It was almost evidence that Max was a victim of-Why him? Why couldn't it be somebody else?

" I'm going to go get a drink of water," Max muttered to Tyson as he walked into the building.

* * *

Rei watched as Max slowly walked away from the group. Something inside of him told him to follow Max. Rei shook his head slightly. There couldn't be anything wrong with Max; Max would tell the others if he was ill. Still… It wouldn't hurt to check, would it?

* * *

Max reached for a cup and took out a glass bottle full of water. Would his friends really care if he were a patient of- how would they react to him? The bottle slipped from his hand and broke into many pieces on the floor. Absentmindedly, Max dropped the cup and broke it as well. Smiling to himself, Max reached down and picked a large piece of glass.

Hissing, Max dropped the glass and stared at the blood starting to drip from his hand. Suddenly, Max knew the truth. He was dying and there was no denying it. Tears started to form in his eyes, as he finally understood that there was no cure for him. Even the pills that the doctor provided for him were of no use. How many times did the doctor try to tell him that he was drug resistant? Yet, his parents held on to the idea that there had to be at least some other type of drug that might work, but Max knew. He knew nothing would work but he denied it. He might as well admit it to himself right now. He was-is- a patient of-

" Max! Are you okay?" Rei kneeled down next to Max and started to clean up the mess immediately. Max sat there as Rei quickly threw out the large pieces of glass and started to clean up the smaller pieces. Max watched as a piece of glass barely visible to the eye cut Rei on the finger.

On a sudden impulse, Max grabbed Rei's hand and stared at the blood starting to seep out of the cut. Curiously, Max watched as the blood dripped off of Rei's finger and fall to make a small stain on Rei's white shirt. How lucky Rei was! His blood, pure and clean, was free of any viruses. Max, on the other hand, had poison running throughout his body.

" Max? Is something the matter?" Rei's voice seemed so far away to Max as a new idea started to form in his head. Here was the chance that Max was waiting for; Max could infect Rei right now. It was all so clear- Max could contaminate Rei and Rei could unknowingly infect everyone else.

Max looked at his own blood seeping out of his cut on his hand. With just one touch, Rei would most certainly die. With just one touch…

* * *

It's kind of obvious as to what Max has now, right?

Anyways... I would like to thank _Monarch _for pointing out the mistake that I made in the first chapter. Thank you!


	3. Shattered

At long last, the third chapter! Enjoy!

* * *

" Max, is something the matter?" Rei's voice seemed so far away to Max as a new idea started to form in his head. Here was the chance that Max was waiting for; Max could infect Rei right now. It was all so clear- Max could contaminate Rei and Rei could unknowingly infect everyone else.

Max looked at his own blood seeping out of his cut on his hand. With just one touch, Rei would most certainly die. With just one touch…

" Max?" Rei asked uneasily.

Max suddenly realized what he was about to do and dropped Rei's hand. What was he thinking? This wasn't the _real _Max, was it? Could Max truly have thought that way- did Max really wanted to-to _kill_ Rei? No. That couldn't have been it. That couldn't have been Max. It had to be a dream or-or something.

" Max?"

" I-I'm sorry." Max stood up and walked out of the kitchen, his frail body seeming to collapse any moment.

Rei sat there, dazed. What had just happened here? What was Max talking about; what was he sorry about? Rei shook his head and stood up, looking down at his bleeding finger. Wait a minute… Blood!

* * *

" Max," Max turned at the sound of the voice.

" What is it, Kai?" Max watched as Kai walked out from beneath the shadows of the building to stand face-to-face with Max.

" I saw what happened in the kitchen. You know what's going to happen if you even try to hurt anyone, Max," Kai said.

" I know but still… Sometimes, it just doesn't seem to be fair. I mean, why me? Why me? It just doesn't seem fair and I get so angry that I wish that everyone else would die along with me… Maybe then I won't feel so-so afraid. Maybe if I knew that everyone else was going to die and not just me," Max looked down at his feet, " I wouldn't feel so alone in the world. Sometimes… Sometimes, when I wake up suddenly in the middle of the night and it's really dark, I get scared. I get scared that maybe I died during the night and that I no longer exist. I'm afraid that once I die, everyone will forget about me eventually and my existence will be forgotten…"

Max looked back up at the now silent Kai. " That's why I sometimes have the sudden urge to-to bring everyone else down with me. That way, our existence can be forgotten together."

Kai stared at Max a bit longer before he turned around and walked away, his scarf trailing after him. Max groaned as he sat down, his head in his hands. What had he just done/said? Was that really true? Was that what he was really feeling? How could he-optimistic, hyper, happy-go-lucky Max- truly think that way? That wasn't the way that Max was supposed to think. He wasn't supposed to be so-so _negative_.

Groaning, Max stood up again and made his way to the room in which he shared with the others while they were there. Stepping into the dark room, Max went to his bag and took out all of the bottles of pills that he had. Angrily, Max grabbed one and threw it across the room. Upon hitting the wall, the bottle cracked open and the pills that were inside spilled out. Grabbing the rest of the bottles, Max threw them all, tears starting to form in his eyes as he watched various types of pills scattered across the floor of the room. None of these pills-not a single one- was going to save him from death. Not one.

Looking around at all the pills that were supposedly designed to save him, a single tear fell from his eye and broke as it hit the ground. Broken… Looking down at his cut hand, Max cursed himself. If only he could end his life now and get it over with. If only he didn't have to go through all this pain…

Choking on tears, Max sat down heavily on the floor. He wasn't supposed to be like this. He wasn't supposed to be so downbeat and depressed. That wasn't how Max was supposed to be. Everyone expected him to be happy, hopeful, and free of problems. He was _made_ to be that. He was the one that was supposed to help everyone out with an encouraging word and a bright smile. He was supposed to do that and he did that. But who was going to help **him**?

" MAX!" Rei stared wide-eyed at the scene in front of him. Walking into the room, Rei slowly made his way towards the dispirited Max. Kneeling down on one knee, Rei tried to see into Max's eyes-to see what was hurting Max so much that Max would crack. " It's okay, Max. Everything's o-"

" No, Rei. Everything's not okay," Max interrupted Rei. Confused, Rei stared back at Max.

" What are you talking about?" Rei frowned.

" Don't you get it? EVERYTHING IS NOT ALL RIGHT! How can it be when I'm dying away over here? Huh? How can it be okay when there's no more hope for me in this world except to die? How can it be okay when all I can think about is death? Answer me, Rei! HOW CAN IT BE OKAY?" Tears streamed from Max's eyes as he let his optimistic mask fall and shatter among his useless pills.

Rei watched Max cry, dumbfounded- what was he supposed to do at times like this? Should he call the others? Rei stood up and looked at Max. How in the world did the Max that he saw defeat some very strong opponents become like this? How? The Max that now sat slouched sobbing was definitely not the same Max that Rei knew. Surely this was not the Max that was the upbeat member of the Blade-Breakers.

Sighing, Rei turned around to go fetch the other members. As he opened the door to the room, Rei heard Max sniffle and stand up.

" Please, Rei. Don't tell the others. I know that you know now, so stop pretending that you don't know." Rei turned around and nodded his head to acknowledge that he was listening. Max continued. " Kai already knows. No one else knew until you found out. Please, Rei. Don't tell anyone. Kai already warned me that if I hurt anyone, he'd reveal everything to the others. I'm sorry, Rei."

Rei sighed, and then closed the door. " I understand, Max. But tell me one thing- what exactly were you trying to do in the kitchen before?"

" I'm sorry." Max mumbled while looking down at his feet.

" I know you're sorry. I know. I just want to know what you were trying to do before."

" No… You don't want to know."

" Max, TELL ME! I need to know what was going on back there!" Rei grabbed Max's collar and forced Max to look him in the eye.

" You need to know? Do you truly need to know?"

" Yes, Max… Yes, I have to know," Rei sighed and removed his hands from Max's collar.

" I- I was trying to-to bring you down with me," Max quickly continued when he saw Rei's shocked face. " I wasn't doing it intentionally. I- I don't know what came over me just then… I'm sorry, Rei."

Rei shook his head slowly before turning around and closing the door after him. Max stood there and slowly sat back down on the ground. Looking around at the disordered room, he picked up the various medications from the floor and slowly threw them out. And then, he fell asleep.

* * *

Well, there was the third chapter. I don't know if I like this chapter that much-it doesn't seem like Max or Rei... Oh, wells... IF you find any mistakes, please let me know. It is very much appreciated.

To _Coconut Lime_, thank you for pointing out my mistake in writing the computer virus. What Max has isn'treally contagious, you just have to be careful because it can be transmitted easily but not like a normal cold.


	4. Red

" Hey, Max! May I ask you a question?" Tyson said as he leaned back after finishing his dinner. " Why are you staying here with us instead of with your dad? It's not like we're that far away from each other and you wouldn't have that much of a trouble coming here to train in the morning…"

" Yeah! How come you're here with us instead of your dad? Don't you like your dad?" Daichi piped up.

Max stopped eating and looked down at his food. " Why do you ask?"

" No particular reason… I was just curious," Tyson yawned and looked over at Max. " It just seemed weird, you know? I mean, it's not like you don't have anywhere else to stay and your dad doesn't live that far away either."

" I…" Max didn't know what to say. Why _was_ he here? It'd probably be better for him to stay with his dad than with his friends anyways… It'd be easier to keep his secret secret as well… What made him stay here? " I…"

" Don't make him say something that makes him uncomfortable," Hiro said without even looking at the trio." Geez… I didn't think that this would make Max feel that way… Sorry, Max, if I offended you," Tyson grinned at Max.

Max returned Tyson's smile with one of his one. " No, you didn't do anything. It's just that I never thought about it. I think I'm just staying here so that I can be able to stay with you guys longer." _Before I die, that is…_

" Aw, Max! You're a good friend!" Tyson smiled even larger as he leaned over and gave Max a slight punch on the arm. Max grinned back at Tyson as he returned the friendly punch…

How much longer will I be able to play with the rest of them like this before I have to go? How much longer?

* * *

Max sighed and turned over onto his stomach. He could hear the others breathing in and out as they slept (A/N: snoring!) and tried to will himself back to sleep. When counting sheep didn't work, Max sat up and look around the room at his friends. Sleeping. Great. Slowly getting up, he tip-toed to the door and made his way out.

Once outside, he stretched his arms and yarned. Plopping down onto the deck, he leaned back and looked up at the night sky. The stars were still twinkling and the moon was still bright. After looking around at the garden before him, Max decided to go visist his dad. _Better take my bike_, he thought as he unlocked his bicycle and started to make his way to his dad's house.

After pedaling for awhile, he reached his dad's home. Getting off his bike, he leaned on his knees and tried to catch his breath. He never felt so-so _exhausted_ before. _Probably lack of sleep and exercise. _Reaching over, he pressed the doorbell and waited for his dad to open the door. Soon enough, the door opened and Max's dad looked down at Max with sleepy eyes.

" Max? What are doing here so…" He looked down at his watch, " early? Never mind. Come in, you're probably tired."

Max's dad opened the door wider for Max to step inside. But Max didn't get a chance to go in…

* * *

" Judy, phone call."

" I'll be right there," Judy quickly finished looking through the papers and handed them back to Emily. " Good. Oh, Emily, will you go get me a cup of coffee? Thanks."

Sighing, she picked up the phone. " Hello? … Oh, hi… Wait a minute. Does this has to do something with Max? … WHAT! What do you mean? … No, I don't care what your excuse is- you obviously did something wrong in order for Max to end up that-… No. No, no, no. I. Don't. Care. I'm going over there right now… HE'S MY SON AS WELL! … YOU CAN'T STOP ME! I'M GOING THERE RIGHT- … I'm sorry… I'm just-I'm leaving. Bye."

Judy slammed the phone down and leaned forward in her chair. Shaking her head, she stood up and grabbed her purse. Running out the door, she nearly ran Emily over and spilled coffee all over the floor.

" I'm so sorry, Emily, but I have to go," Judy said as she turned around and ran down the hallway.

" What's going on?…"

* * *

" So… What does this all mean?" The Hiro looked at Mr. Dickinson with questioning eyes.

Mr. Dickinson sighed. " It means Max won't be able to compete in the tournaments due to health problems."

" Such as…?" Hiro looked down at the medical papers in his hands again.

" Such as AIDS."

* * *

Well! I rewrote that chapter! I hated this chapter the most and so I decided to rewrite it! Yay! Now, all I have to do is finish typing up my 6th chapter... 


	5. Yesterday

Wahhh! I am so sorry for not updating last month!

* * *

" Ugh…" Max groaned as he pushed himself up with one arm. It was getting harder to sleep these days. He'd better go complaining to his doctor about the new allergy medications he was prescribed-it didn't seem like they were working otherwise he'd be sound asleep right now. He flopped himself back on to his bed and laid there for awhile staring up at the ceiling when he thought he heard something coming from the living room. _Must be dad_, he thought as he wrapped his blanket around him and slowly, as quietly as he can, made his way to the door.

He creaked the door open and heard it clearly now. _Home videos…Again…_ Silently, he put one barefoot in front of the other and quickly crossed over the cold floors to the living room. He sighed and shook his head at the sight; his father _WAS_ watching home videos, and drinking at the same time. He was about to join his dad and watch the videos with him but stopped.

' _This is our son Max,'_ Max recognized the muffled voice coming from the T.V. screen as his dad's as the video closed-up on newly born Max. _' He's going to be somebody one day and he's going to be recognized by everyone… We're so proud of him for making his way into life… I'm going to make up for all of his brothers and sisters that died before seeing the world by being the best dad he'll ever have… He's going to have the best life ever…'_

Max watched from where he stood as the video continued to show him struggling with his first words, first steps, and even him going to his trips to the dentist.

_' Look, dad!' _Max watched as his 5-year-old self showed his teeth, _' I have a missing tooth! The dentist gave me a shot and it hurt a bit but I didn't cry! Aren't you proud of me?'_

_' Sure kid, I'm so proud of you, son…'_

The screen quickly changed to Max holding the camera awkwardly at his face. Max watched as 9-year-old Max rolled his eyes. _' Ugh… Why do they have to argue?'_ It was then that Max heard his parent's voices arguing in the background. _' If I'm sick, I'm sick. They don't have to blame themselves…'_ He remembered that day. He had returned home after a visit to the doctor's and his parents started to argue about whose fault it was that he was sick. He didn't understand then and he still doesn't understand-why did they argue over his silly allergies? It was because of the stupid allergies that they argued and eventually divorced…

He didn't realize the video had ended until his dad leaned over and turned the T.V. off. The sudden silence made Max feel uneasy inside but he waited and watched his dad as he sat there with his hand massaging his temples. _Must've drunk too much…_

Max was still standing there when his dad reached over, knocked some cans of beer out of the way, and took out a notebook of some ort. Max was curious but was surprised when his dad started to read out loud with a slurred tongue.

" ' I never thought I'd ever have a diary but now I feel I have to write my feelings down on paper…' " He flipped through a few pages randomly before reading again.

" ' The doctor told me today that Max doesn't have much time left. He has about a year or two at most to live… The doctor also told me that there's no more hope for Max. That he's drug resistant. Only when I begged him to save my son did the doctor give me another prescription for Max… No matter what the doctor says… I'm still going to hold on to the belief that Max has a chance…' What was I thinking," Max's dad shook his head and continued to flip through the pages.

" ' I'm so sorry to him… I was hoping that we'd be able to spend more time together as a family but we wasted that time fighting… I'm sorry that we couldn't play sports like I was able to do with my dad. Sorry that we couldn't go camping and roast marshmallows over the fire. I'm sorry that you won't be able to have a son and experience the love for someone that you care about…more than your own life… That day when-when you were born-,' " his dad chocked over his words.

" ' I secretly promised you that I'd never let you down, never derive you of all the things this damm world had to offer…'" He paused briefly, just long enough to wipe the tears welling in his eyes and to clear his throat.

" 'When I found out that your were-you were HIV positive, I wished that it were me that had it instead of you. I've lived and I've experienced all the love and joy I wanted. You… you were stolen of your life and I'm-I'm sorry for making it harder for you by fighting with your mom even when we knew you hated it…' "

Max couldn't believe it. Him? HIV positive? That can't be right! This- this can't be true… It's-it's all a dream and he's still sleeping in his bed…

Max's dad continued to read out loud from his diary. " ' If it means that you'll be able to live, I'll even live with her for the rest of my life. If-if you can live, I'll even give up my job and move back to America. If you can live, I'll-I'll give up everything and sell everything just so you can live. If-if you can-can live…I'll even die for you…' Oh, man…"

His dad laughed bitterly as if he tried to convince himself that he didn't care but Max was able to see the tears that were streaming down his face.

" Oh, Max… Why? Why did you have to get so sick?"

_I don't know, dad. I don't know…_

" Why couldn't you have stayed healthy?"

_I don't know. I wish I were better. Then, you and mom wouldn't have fought and you wouldn't be doing this right now._

" Why did you go to that dentist?"

_WHAT? I dunno… 'Cause I had a loose tooth? Where'd did that come out?_

"It really is something, isn't it, Judy? To bury your own son…"

Max looked on as his dad wiped his tears with his sleeve and empty out the last can of beer. Sighing, he stood up from the sofa and staggered a bit before seeing Max.

" Max…" Tears could be seen forming in his dad's eyes. " Heh… I must've drank too much… Now I'm hallucinating. Well, I know I can't tell you in real life so I'll tell it to you in this dream. I'm sorry, Max, for not being the best father. I'm sorry and I love you. Now give your old man a hug."

Max stepped backwards as he struggled to keep his balance while his dad fell asleep in his arms. Eventually, Max let his dad fall to the ground with a heavy _thud_. Exhausted with having to support his dad's weight, Max sat down next to him, who only rolled over and started to snore. Once he caught his breath, Max stood up and let his blanket fall…

* * *

" Ugh… I'm never drinking that much ever again…" Max's dad rolled over in his bed and lay there slightly dozing of before he realized he was in his bed. How'd he get here? Surely last night he was drinking in the living room.

Alarmed, he got out and was about to rush out when he noticed something stuck to his door.

A Post-It. With Max's handwriting.

It read:

_I'm okay, dad. I'm okay._

_

* * *

_

_Phew! _Got that done and over with. Now to write my sixth chapter... As_Monarch _suggested, this chapter is about how Max found out about himself. Much thanks goes to _Coconut Lime_ for helping me with this chapter.


	6. IT SHALL BE CONTINUED!

I can't believe I'm doing this but... I'm back with Chapter 6.

* * *

Tyson stared wide-eyed at Hiro. Kenny and Hillary also stared in shock. Rei shifted his eyes about the room as if he were uncomfortable with the situation. Kai stood aside from the rest of the group, watching Tyson's reaction.

" Repeat that, Hiro. What did you just say?" Tyson asked, his voice dangerously getting high.

" Max won't be competing this year, Tyson." Hiro replied in a monotonous voice.

" And why?" Tyson once more asked.

" Because of health reasons," Hiro answered in the same voice as before.

Yelling out in frustration, Tyson flung his hands up in the air. " I don't get it! Max never missed out on a beybattle because of _health reasons_," Tyson put emphasis on the last two words, " Why should Max miss out this time? It doesn't make any sense!"

" It doesn't matter if it doesn't make any sense, Tyson. Max won't be in this year's tournament and get that straight," Hiro stood up and prepared to go.

" That's not the point! What I don't get is that Max never showed any signs of being sick before! It's so strange for him to be suddenly saying that he can't beyblade because he's home in bed. I mean, hey! I train even when I'm sick! Why shouldn't he? He never was sick..."

" Tyson," Kai spoke up suddenly.

" Yeah, Kai?"

" Drop it. If Max can't beyblade, then you can't do anything about it." Kai said while walking towards. Tyson stopped Kai halfway and attempted to glare at him. " What is it?"

" Do you mean to say that you don't care that Max won't be in this year's tournament? Are you saying that you don't care about Max? I mean, it's obvious that Max wants to beyblade but can't because the BBA won't let him, isn't it? Rei!" Tyson turned towards Rei, " Don't you think that way? Max should be with us in the tournament!"

Rei avoided Tyson's eyes and looked down at his feet. " Actually, Tyson, I agree with Kai on this one. If Max isn't allowed to beyblade, then there has to be some type of reason as to why. Sorry, Tyson, but I don't think Max should beyblade."

" WHAT! Rei! Don't you care about Max? What is up with you guys?" Tyson stared at shock at Rei.

" Yeah, Rei. Why don't you agree with Tyson?" Hillary spoke up. " It's not like Max would have some serious disease that would actually hurt us, you know? It's probably something like the common flu."

" Actually," Kenny said while wiping his glasses, " if that was the case, then Max should stay at home and rest for a very long time. If he were to beyblade in that condition, not only would he transfer the virus to everyone, but also he won't be able to battle well because of his weak state. It'd be unfair to Max to allow him to beyblade while ill and then to lose because of it."

" Kenny! That's not the point here! The point is that the BBA won't let Max beyblade! They should at least ask Max if he wants to beyblade or not. Plus, if he did have something like the flu, he'd be over it by the time the tournament came about," Tyson stated.

" In that case, I agree with you, Tyson. Max would be better by that time if he has it right now. Why isn't he allowed to beyblade?" Kenny frowned and looked over at Kai and Rei. " And why won't you two support us?"

" Look here, Tyson. I really don't want to do this, but I guess I have to if you're going to let me go. Max has the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome." Kai glared at Tyson. Rei flinched at these words and Kenny's gasp.

" Ooh… Max isn't going to like this…" Rei muttered under his breath.

" Max has WHAT?" Tyson screeched. Rei watched as Hillary turned pale and as Kenny stared open-mouthed at Kai.

Kai turned and walked out of the room, leaving the three shocked and unbelieving. Rei slowly started to edge towards the door as well when Tyson turned towards him. Rei felt his muscles tensing up and stared steadily back at Tyson.

" Rei… Did you know this, too?" Tyson asked, his usually bright eyes suddenly dull and hurt.

Rei returned Tyson's stare before looking away. " Yes, Tyson. I already knew about Max."

" I see…" Tyson lowered his eyes as well. He looked up suddenly and rushed out of the room.

" Tyson!" Rei ran after him and grabbed Tyson by the arm. " Where are you going?"

Tyson shrugged out of Rei's grip before continuing on his way. Over his shoulder, he yelled out, " To Max's place! I won't believe this until I hear it from his own mouth!"

--

Tyson pressed the bell and leaned over on his knees, exhausted from running. When nobody opened the door, he looked up and pressed the bell once more. When it wasn't answered still, he frowned before knocking on the door sharply. Walking over to the window, Tyson peered inside. Dark.

" Nobody's home…" he mumbled as he rang the bell once more. His head perked up when he heard his name being called.

Looking in the direction of the caller, he shouted out. " Hillary! And Chief!"

" Tyson!" Both stopped and leaned on the wall to catch their breath. Kenny recovered first.

" Tyson! Bad news! A little after you left, Mr. Dickinson called. Max is in the hospital! He said that he'd meet us there. Come on, Tyson! We have to go!" The three started to run towards the hospital when Hiro drove up.

" Get in. I'll take you guys." Tyson grabbed open the car door and the three filed in.

" Come on, Hiro! Can't you drive any faster?" Tyson urged Hiro.

" Tyson, can't you see that I'm going as fast as I can? I understand that you're worried about Max but pipe down and be quiet! We'll get there when we get there!" At this, Tyson sat back and looked out of the window at this, hoping to see the hospital.

When he spotted the hospital, Tyson once more urged Hiro to drive faster. As soon as Hiro stopped the car, Tyson jumped out with Hillary and Kenny following suite. Running into the lobby, he asked the nurse behind the desk for Max's room number.

" I'm sorry, but visiting hours are over. You'll have to come back later."

Tyson slammed his hands down on the desk. " Look, lady. I don't care if visiting hours are over. Max is my friend! We're practically brothers! I have to go see him!"

" I'm sorry, sir, but you're going to have to wait! The patients all need their rest! You have to allow them to sleep and recuperate or else your friend isn't going to get any better! Just wait until visiting hours! Do you think we call it that for no apparent reason? Just wait!" The nurse glared at Tyson.

" You don't understand! I'm Tyson! The Tyson! The World Champion! You have to let me through!" Tyson ran towards the elevator doors but was stopped by guards.

" I don't care who you are. You are going to have to follow the rules here whether you like it or not." The nurse stated.

" Tyson… I think we're going to have to come back later," Kenny started but Tyson stopped him.

" Chief, you said that Mr. Dickinson was going to meet us here, right? Where is he?" As soon as Tyson said this, the elevator doors opened and Mr. Dickinson stepped out of it.

" Hello, Tyson, Kenny, Hillary." Mr. Dickinson sighed and walked over to the sitting chairs. The three followed after him, Tyson glaring at the nurse and guards.

" Well, how is he?" Hillary was the first to ask. She sat down across from Mr. Dickinson and Kenny sat next to her. Tyson paced back and forth in front of them.

" I'm afraid I'll have to give you some bad news." Mr. Dickinson started.

* * *

The reason why I updated the 6th chapter after saying I'll discontinue it is in my profile. Everyone who reviewed my past chapters and wanted me to continue, give yourselves a pat on the back- your reviews did all the magic that they can. I was inspired/motivated by your reviews and felt guilty about cutting 'Broken' off without even giving you a proper ending. I'll try to do my best from now on and not run away because of a silly writer's block. 


	7. Hope

Yay! It's finally the 7th chapter!

* * *

Tyson fell back onto his bed. Crossing his arms under his head, he tried to recall the past few hours. It all seemed so, so _fake. _He frowned and sat back up. Somehow, it just didn't fit. Nothing made sense. He didn't understand how it was possible for Max to be still alive. Mr. Dickinson even told him that Max's body wasn't reacting to any of the therapies/ drugs given. If he were able to survive this long… Is it still possible that Max can still live?

With this in mind, Tyson quickly ran out into the street towards Kenny's house.

* * *

" He's awake. I think it's alright for you to go in to see him now."

" Thank you," Rei said softly. He wasn't sure how Max would react to everything. As far as Rei knew, Max still didn't realize that the others were told of his state. Walking slowly down the corridor, he pondered over what to tell Max. Should he just pretend nothing happened? But then again… If Max finds out later on, it just might be worse… Sighing, he looked up at the door to make sure he was at the right room and knocked. He heard a soft ' _come in_' reply.

Giving Max a bright smile, Rei entered the room. He noticed that Mr. Dickinson and Max's parents were already there. Rei gave each of them a small nod and closed the door behind him.

" Hello, Rei. We were wondering when you'd come to visit, isn't that right, Max?" Judy stroked her son's hand. Max smiled slightly towards his mother before drawing his attention to Rei.

" I heard Tyson and the others came by last night. What happened?" Rei could hear how much Max tried to put his old energy and bounce into his voice.

Rei smiled back, just as how he always used to. " Nothing much. Tyson demanded to be let through, apparently, but the nurse wouldn't let him. He only calmed down when Mr. Dickinson came. How're you feeling?"

" Better. I hope I'll be out of this hospital soon." Max sighed and looked down at his hands. " Actually, Rei, we all kind of decided that it'd be best if I told the others about, about you know."

" They already know." Rei felt a pang of guilt when Max swung his eyes towards Rei. For once, those bright blue eyes sent shivers down Rei's spine. " It was all so sudden. Tyson was saying something bizarre and was annoying Kai so it just slipped. It was all an accident. We didn't mean to, honestly. It was just all so sudden. I'm so sorry, Max. I know you didn't want them to know, but… I'm sorry." Rei looked away towards the ground. He could feel Max's steady gaze upon him.

" Well!" Mr. Dickinson said, " I do say that the time is late. Will you two escort me to the front? There are a few things I would like to discuss with you." He stood up to go and so did Max's parents. " I do hope that you get much better when I come for my next visit."

When the door shut behind the three adults, Max spoke up.

" But… Why?" All the energy and bounce that was so visible in his voice before was now all gone.

Rei shook his head and sat down across from Max's bed. " I guess… I guess it's because we felt that it would be unfair to the others if they didn't know. After all, here you were suddenly dropping out of the tournaments because of unheard reasons. Tyson and the others were really confused and they demanded answers. They wanted to know why you couldn't compete. I guess they felt that it was unfair to you if you weren't allowed to compete while they did."

" But… what about me? This is unfair to me! I asked you not to tell the others! I mean… Even if I did plan on telling them later on, I didn't want them to know so soon. I'm not ready to face them yet." Max broke his gaze and looked out the window. " I'm not ready…"

Rei sighed and for a moment, there was silence between the two. Max stared out the window without seeing and Rei sat there in thought.

" Max… Why don't you think you're ready yet?"

Rei's calm and cool voice penetrated the silent air. Max turned his gaze from the window back to Rei. Rei didn't recognize the person now staring at him. Rei saw, for the first time coming from those eyes, fear and fatigue. But… Fear from what? Tired from what?

" I'm not ready… I'm not strong enough."

" What?"

" I'm not strong enough. I'm afraid how the others will act towards me. I'm afraid to lose them. I'm afraid… I'm afraid that I'll be forgotten… I'm just not strong enough…" Max looked downwards at his hands once more. " I'm not strong enough…"

" Nonsense!"

At the new voice, both Rei and Max looked up sharply towards the door. Tyson stood there, his hands clamped into a fist. He strode quickly towards the bed and grabbed Max by the shirt.

" What are you talking about? Have you lost your mind? How can you say that? Max, tell me this isn't true!" Tyson shook Max. " Max! How could you think that way? Why would you ever doubt us? Why?" Tyson slowly let go of Max's shirt and fell heavily onto a nearby chair. " Why would you doubt us? We're your friends…"

" I'm sorry, Tyson, I'm sorry…" Max sniffled. From the corner of his eye, Rei noticed Kenny and Hillary entering the room and stand in front of the closed door. " I'm sorry, but… You'd never understand. Ever since I found out… You'd never understand. I'm sorry, guys, I'm sorry."

" That doesn't explain it! You doubted us, Max! You thought that we'd stop, stop ARGH! The point is, you doubted us. You didn't believe that we'd stick with you." Tyson jumped up from his seat. " You're being real silly, you know that? I mean, we're the ones that actually stuck with Kai! He was against us, he wanted our bit beasts! But even then, did we turn against him? Max, get a grip! If we were like that then, do you think we would've changed now?"

" I… I never thought about it that way…" Max looked up at the group before him and smiled- a true, genuine, smile. " I never thought it like that…"

Tyson gave Max a wide smile. " Don't worry, buddy. We'll be with you no matter what. I promise you that. I mean, hey! Who knows? If you were able to live this long, we can still have hope!"

Hillary cheered at this and Kenny gave the group a smile as well. Max laughed and Rei saw this time that it wasn't forced. Just then the door banged opened and Daichi stood there panting. He stood there trying to catch his breath before he spoke.

" Why didn't anyone tell me? I just found out from your grandpa, Tyson!" Daichi bellowed. Max flinched, afraid of how Daichi would come out. Daichi grinned and placed his hands on his hip. " What? You didn't think I'd be of no help, did you? Well, think again because da man is here now!"

" We'll be back!" They cried out to Rei as a passing nurse informed them that visiting hours were just about over. Rei stood up to leave but was stopped by Max.

" Um… Rei? You don't think that any of them will, um, hate me?" Max asked timidly.

" Why would they?" Rei frowned.

" You know… How I tried to, um, you know. If they find out, do you think that they'll start to avoid me? Do you think…?" Max shivered at the thought.

" Max… Honestly, I don't know. But! But, I'll tell you one thing. If they're like me, then they won't mind. You'd be forgiven quickly. And I'm pretty sure that the rest of them aren't too different from me." Rei said. Max seemed to be relieved by this and fell back onto his pillows. Rei smiled once more and left the room, closing the door softly behind him.

* * *

Hey! I just thought that the fic was becoming a bit TOO angsty so I made a more uppity one! Plus, I thought that it was about time for a famous Tyson speech. I didn't feel like putting in what the 'bad news' of Mr. Dickinson was so... Don't worry! If you don't like all the uppity stuff, I was planning on making a bit... You know. Please tell me what you thought honestly! I'm really concerned if I wrote the characters in character!


	8. Thoughts

Here's the eight chapter! It's not as good, though...

* * *

" And team BBA wins this match as well! That's another win for Tyson..." The sounds of the television from the other room filtered in softly into Max's hospital room. He smiled. It seemed like Tyson would become World Champion this year as well. That was good. He never really enjoyed much change. Changes like having his parents divorce or like finding out that he was, basically, a very sick kid. It'd be strange to have a change like Tyson losing the World Champion title. Strange and awkward.

He sighed and stared up at the ceiling. There was nothing to do in a hospital room all day. There were times when he could go into some of the other rooms and play around with the other kids in the hospital, but these days he was getting tired. Fast. And that prevented him from doing much but staring up at the ceiling.

" ... Team BBA..." The muffled sounds from the television once more woke Max up from his daydreams.

_Maybe I'll watch something... _He thought as he reached for the remote. The television flickered to life and the news reporter's face filled the screen.

" ... Max? Many people believe that-" He quickly changed the channel. It was a good thing that he had asked that everyone working on him would keep his medical records secret from the media. People were too nosy these days.

After flipping through the channels for a while, Max punched the 'OFF' button on the remote and laid there. There just wasn't that much to see on television these days. It was all either about celebrities or some other thing. They just didn't seem to appeal to him anymore. It disgusted him to see people wasting their lives away on such idiotic things when they could be doing something else. Something worthwhile. Something that people'll remember you by. You just never know. You just might die the next day from some type of freak accident.

He closed his eyes and began to feel drowsy. It was good to sleep for once.

* * *

" Good job, Tyson!"

" Yeah! You guys did so well out there!"

" Awesome beybattle, dudes!"

Tyson grinned and waved at his cheering fans before exiting the arena. He was happy. He was ectastic. He was... No. He wasn't... Tyson frowned and sat down heavily on the locker bench. Something was missing. Something that was always there. Something... But he couldn't exactly put a finger on it. What was it? What was wrong?

" It's not the same, is it?"

Tyson looked up at the Chinese blader with confused eyes. " Huh? What do you mean?"

" It's not the same, without... You know. He was always there and praised us all. Even when we didn't do so well..." Rei sat down next to Tyson and looked down at his hands. " Even when we weren't on the same team, he'd come and find us just to tell us..."

Tyson nodded. That was it. How did he not notice?

" There you guys are! I've been looking all over for you guys!" Hillary came in and sat down opposite of them, swinging her legs.

" Hey! Watch where you swing those legs! You'll hit me!" Tyson stood up and teasingly shoved Hillary off of her balance. Laughing, she stood up as well and brushed her skirt out.

" Your brother wants to see you, Tyson. I think he and Kenny want to look at your beyblade. You know, make sure there's nothing wrong with it after the battle." She turned and looked at Rei. " You coming?"

" Nah. I think I'll just sit here for awhile. I'll be there in a minute."

" 'Kay! Come on, Tyson! You don't want to keep your brother waiting, do you? He has a lot more important stuff to do other than looking out for you!"

" What! HIM looking out for ME? Yeah, right!"

The voices of the two echoed until they were no more. Rei leaned back and closed his eyes. Silence. Good silence.

* * *

" Hey! Tyson! I haven't seen you in awhile," Michael came up to Tyson, a hand out. Tyson took it and gave him a friendly handshake.

" How's the team?"

" We're good. What's up with the Bladebreakers, though? Where's Max? I've heard a couple of rumors that he retired and all, but I don't believe it. Been with him too much to know he'd quit just like that. He's not like that, you know? What _did_ happen to him?" Michael looked over at Tyson, expecting some form of answer.

" Max? Oh, uhm... Something just came up. He'll be back next year," _I hope_...

" Yeah? Well, tell him I said hi. Hey, Emily!"

Tyson watched as Michael ran back to his team, a slight jealousy forming in his heart. He wished that Max could be here competing as well. Everything seemed so different, so strange. Was it only because of Max's absence? Or was it because he knew the reason for Max not competeing? Either way, he wished that everything could go back to how it was before. It was all so much more fun and innocent back when he first became World Champion. Now... Things were so complicated.

* * *

The ride back was a silent one. Hillary sighed and looked out of the window. Everybody wasn't acting as they usually did. _And no wonder... I can kind of see why..._ She sighed once more and leaned against the window. In the far distance, she was able to spot the hospital.

" Hey, you guys. Wanna go see how Max is doing?" She asked absentmindedly.

" ... Max? I guess it would be good to see him... We could tell him all about the battles today!" Daichi piped up. Hillary smiled at him and his efforts to bring the team's mood up. There were some things that were never going to change.

* * *

" Here we are," Kenny said as they approached Max's room. He hesitated for a second at the door before turning the knob and entering the room. He felt real uneasy these days. He was pretty sure the reason for his uneasiness had to do with Max's diagnoses, but he tried to push that thought out of his mind. After all, AIDS wasn't really contagious. You just... had to be extremely careful. There isn't anything to be afraid of.

Actually, Kenny wasn't afraid of Max or of what Max carried. What Kenny worried about most was the one fact that Max was probably hurt by what he had said before. He just couldn't get it out of his mind how Max had asked how Kenny's reaction would be if he had found out if anyone carried such diseases. And he had answered that he would stay away from that person. Come to think of it... Max seemed hurt by that. Hurt and shocked. Why didn't he notice that before? Surely, if it was someone else, they would've noticed... Then again, although smart, he wasn't very sharp...

* * *

Max was awake and was having a lively conversation with his parents. At seeing his friends, he motioned at them to come in closer. The others noticed how much better he looked. How much more color was in his face. How much more lively he had become. How much more he smiled and laughed. It seemed as if the Max that they had always known had never left, as if Max never was sick. It was almost as if Max was only playing a prank on them all this time and he wasn't really sick.

" What's going on? Did something good happen?" Tyson asked, his eyes giving away his excitement at seeing Max seemingly healthy again.

" Something good! It's the best thing that could've ever happened!" Max grinned at his team members. " They say that there's a doctor in America who majors in blood diseases like AIDS and such. They say that it's possible that this doctor can help and even make it possible fo rme to live longer than estimated!"

" What?"

" Really?"

" Will he really be able to cure Max?"

" They found a cure for AIDS?"

" When are you going to go for treatments?"

" This is awesome!"

" Do you really think that this guy will be successful?"

This last question was made by Kenny, who seemed to have a skeptical face ever since the news was announced.

The smile dissapeared from Max's face, but a spark of hope and determination was to be seen about him. He gripped his blankets and looked down at his fists.

" I'm not sure. I know that this doctor won't completely get rid of the virus, but I do know that he's the only one right now that can help me live longer. That's what I want to do right now. Even for one year. Maybe even two. At least that much. That's my only wish right now," he looked up at them, his face set and serious, " I only wish that I can live for at least a year longer."

* * *

I hope it wasn't too bad. I tried my best... If you find something weird, please let me know!


	9. Oranges

Finally! The 9th chapter! Enjoy!

_

* * *

_

_"... I only wish that I can live for at least a year longer..." _

Max sighed and leaned back into his pillows. It seemed like he had said those words so long ago but it was only two weeks before. In just two weeks, he had been transferred to a hospital in America. In just two weeks, his health has been restored and now he stayed home instead of at a hospital. It all seemed so out-of-the-world to him. Like a miracle or something.

A miracle... It certainly was a miracle. And if it wasn't, it was something pretty close to being a miracle. He was able to notice that not only his health was being restored, but his parents' relationship and the mood and atmosphere of his friends were also changing back to before the time when everyone knew he was sick.

And... he liked it.

* * *

" Hey, Max!" Tyson and Daichi bounded into his room, all smiles. " Guess what? We won this round as well! It looks like we're going to be the World Champions this year as well! Isn't that just swell?" 

" Really? Wow! That's so cool! Man... I wish I was there..."

" Don't worry!" Tyson punched him in the shoulder. " I'm pretty sure you'll be able to be with us out there next year and the next year and the year after that as well! I mean, hey! You're doing so well!"

Max grinned at Tyson, happy to be able to feel like nothing was changed.

" Do you guys really think so?"

" Yeah! Max, I'm most nearly positive that you'll be beybattling in no time!" Daichi grinned. " I can't wait to beybattle with you again! It's not the same without you!"

" It sure isn't." At the new voice, all three turned around and looked over towards the door. There stood the rest of the team.

" Here," Rei handed Max a plastic bag, " Oranges are abundant with vitamin C so they're supposed to prolong your lifespan. It's good for your immune system."

" Gee... Thanks, Rei!"

Rei smiled. " It wasn't just me. Kenny did the research and I just went out and bought it with Kai's money."

" Yeah. And it was Tyson and Daichi who asked me to research on it."

Max stared at them all, unbelieving. After a bit, a slow smile broke out onto his face. " You guys are the best!"

* * *

" Don't you think Max looked a lot better than the last time we saw him?" Daichi asked as he plopped down onto the couch. Tyson sat down next to him and began to peel an orange. 

" Definitely. I don't know how because he didn't even meet the doctor yet but... It's still good to see him all healthy and everything. You want some?" Tyson offered half the orange to Daichi.

" Thanks."

" No problem."

" Hey, guys?"

" Yeah?" They looked up at Kenny who sat down across from them.

" Why do you think he's so good suddenly? I mean, it's _good_ that he's better and all but it doesn't make any sense. Patients usually don't get healthy all of a sudden, do they?" Kenny said as he began to set his notebook up. " It's good to believe in miracles and all but it's kinda risky, you know? It's not always going to be this smooth and uphill. How did he get so better?"

" Willpower."

All three looked up at Kai in confusion, waiting for him to further explain himself. He merely leaned against a wall and closed his eyes.

" What do you mean, Kai?" Curious, Rei joined the group and sat down in an empty armchair.

" He has hope and he's living on it. When I was at the abbey... Willpower was the only thing we lived by." He opened his eyes and gave the group a steady stare before turning around and walking out, his white scarf ends trailing after him.

The four looked at each other, each pondering over what Kai had just told them. Rei was the first to break the awkward silence.

" Well! I think I'll go train some more..."

" Uh... Me, too."

" Yeah... I think I have to train, too."

" Hey! Wait for me!" Kenny gathered up his stuff and rushed out of the room after the other members.

* * *

The roar of the fans' cheer greeted everyone as they entered the arena. Tyson grinned and waved at them all. Daichi leaped about and punched the air. Kenny shyly waved at the fans while Rei gave everyone a soft smile. Kai ignored them all. 

" Gee... I wish Max was here with us. It would have been so much fun." Tyson told the other members as he continued to wave at this fans.

" Well, at least he was able to come out here. It's good enough that he could stay in the locker rooms. If he came out to the arena, there'd be too much questioning going on. Just be glad he came at all." Rei glanced over at Tyson and Daichi. " Try to keep quiet about this, okay? It'll be a bit troublesome if any of the other teams or media discover that he's here and decide to question him for not participating this year."

Tyson stopped waving at his fans and got prepared for his next beybattle. Before he went up, he turned towards Rei. " Sure! Just hope that nobody decides to pop into our locker room while we're not there."

* * *

Max breathed in the smell of the locker room. Its been such a long time since he'd been here... He leaned back against the wall and stared up the ceiling. It finally felt like he was back where he belonged...

* * *

" Hold on, guys. I think I left something back there. I'll catch up with you guys later." 

" Okay... But don't run off and get into trouble this time!"

" Yeah, yeah, yeah..."

Rick turned and went back down the hallway that he and his teammates had just walked past. He hadn't left anything behind. He just didn't want to hang around with his so-called teammates. They just didn't appeal to him. It was better now than when he first met them but still... They just weren't his type of friends.

Whisteling, he strolled down the hallways, not caring wheter or not he was disturbing the other teams. He was walking past the Bladebreaker's room when something told him to stop. Going back a few paces, he leaned in against the door and listened. He could hear the television playing.

_Psh... Don't they know better than to leave the t.v. on? _He thought as he reached for the doorknob.

Swinging the door open, he stode over to the television and turned it off without bothering to see if anyone was in there. After leaving the room, he continued to walk down the hallway, whisteling.

Stopping suddenly, his eyes widened as he thought over what he just saw.

" Hey, Rick!"

Ignoring whoever it was, he turned around and ran back to the Bladebreaker's room and threw the door open.

" Max!"

* * *

Yeah... So... If you find anything strange or have any suggestions, please tell me. About the oranges, it's true! I did some research on them and EAT YOUR ORANGES! Or your vitamin C forthat matter...Visit (http/ for more information.

Oh, and thanks to **Kenzie Jadenwie**for being my 100th reviewer! Thanks to all of my reviewers so far and I hope you all keep on enjoying my stuff!


	10. Rick

Yeah... This is going to be a real slow and uneventful chapter. You HAVE to have one of those every once in a while...

Enjoy and don't forget to tell me anything wrong in here!

* * *

" Max!"

At the sound of Rick's voice, Max felt himself shrinking into himself. He caught himself, though, before Rick would notice anything and straightened himself up and looked up at Rick.

" Yeah... Hey, Rick. How's it going?"

Anger flashed in Rick's eyes. " HOW'S IT GOING? You're asking ME _HOW'S IT GOING_!"

Max flinched before speaking once more.

" Yeah... So! What's going on these days? I heard that Tyson was doing pretty good this tournament."

" Max," Rick strode up to him, " Max, _what in the world is going on here_? Why didn't you come out this tournament?"

_Shoot! What do I say? _" Uh... I didn't feel like it."

" You didn't feel like it?"

Rick's doubting eyes made Max's stomach lurch. He just hoped that he could hold Rick off until one of the others came. He could go out to his friends instead but... That meant facing the media and he wasn't ready for that.

_Please, oh, please let one of the others come back for something..._

" Yeah! I didn't feel like it. Besides... I wanted to see how it felt to be retired." _HOW stupid was THAT! He's never going to fall for that..._

Rick smirked at him, as if to say that he didn't believe him.

" Right... What do you take me for? A jackass?"

" Uhm... No?"

Max watched as Rick's facial expression changed from one of smug to anger. He grabbed Max's collar and pulled him a couple of inches off the ground.

" Tate... You better tell me what's going on before I drag you out there and FORCE you to reveal everything infront of everyone," Rick groweled.

Max squirmed, trying to release himself of Rick's strong grip. That only resulted in the tightening of Rick's grasp.

" Could you please let me go? I don't feel so good hanging off your arm, you know." And it was true. He really didn't feel good. If Rick didn't put him down on stable ground anytime soon, Rick would be forced to when Max's vomit covered him.

" Not unless you tell me everything I want to know first." Rick glared into Max's eyes, making it even more uncomfortable for Max.

" You better let him go before you get hurt yourself."

At the new voice, the two turned their heads towards the door, where the speaker stood.

Tala smirked back at them, the rest of the Blitzkrieg Boys standing not too far away from their captain. They all stepped in, closing the door behind them, and spread out about the room. Tala walked around the two and leaned against the wall opposite the door.

" Valkov... What do you want now?" Rick spat at him, dropping Max in the process.

Tala continued to smirk at Rick while he pushed himself off the wall and strode over to where Rick stood with closed fists. Max watched, still trying to steady himself, as Tala stood glaring up at Rick. Although the size difference was clearly visible, Tala showed no lost of superiority as he swiftly struck a fist out and punched Rick in the stomach.

Rick keeled over, clutching his stomach. He soon came to and lunged at Tala, who only dodged his attack before bringing his knee up. Rick scowled up at Tala from where he had fallen and stood up slowly, wiping the small trickle of blood off of his face.

" Why you-! I'll teach you!" He cried out as he swung his arm towards Tala's head.

Tala ducked the attack and swung his leg out, hitting it squarely against Rick's back. He cried out before crumpling to the ground, unconscious to the surroundings around him.

" Move him to his own place," Tala told Spencer and Bryan before turning to Max. " Come on- you'll be better off in our room."

Max nodded his head subconsciously and followed Tala out the door, looking over his shoulder once to see Rick being hoisted up onto Spencer's shoulder.

Tala led him through the corriders to the Blitzkrieg Boys' locker room. Surprisingly, they had met no one along the way. _I wonder why..._ Max thought as he went over and sat down on one of the benches.

He looked around himself at the bare room. It was like the one he was in before, although a whole lot more cleaner.

Tala moved over to the television and turned it on. Soon, the scenes of the current beybattle showed up on the screen.

" So..." Tala came over and sat down across from Max. " How exactly did Kai find out?"

* * *

Blade met blade in the center of the beydish and let out sparks as the two went out against each other. Fans gasped and grew silent as they all watched intently at the large screens stationed above the arena. For a few more minutes, the two blades went on and off offense as they met each other in the center of the 'dish. It almost seemed as if the other's defense was too strong to break through.

Circling the other's blade, Rei watched for an opening of any kind. As far as he could see, there was none and the battle wasn't going to end if somebody didn't let their defense slip. His eyes left the dish for a second, glancing up at the opponent. Lee grinned up at him. Lowering his eyes, he decided that the battle lasted long enough.

" Driger, NOW!"

His blade swept in for the opening that he had just noticed. Lee saw his motives and tried to prevent him, to no avail. The battle ended and Rei went over to shake hands with his former team member.

" Good job, Lee."

" You, too. That was a good battle. Watch out, though. Next time, it'll be me who wins."

" Yeah, whatever you say."

He turned and waved at the crowd while they cheered the two bladers. Smiling, he started to make his way back to where his team was stationed.

Spencer reached them first.

Frowning slightly, Rei started to quicken his pace. As he got closer, he heard Tyson shout out, " WHAT!"

" What's going on?" Rei asked, hoping that they wouldn't be overheard by any of the fans or media.

" Spencer says that Max is in the Blitzkrieg Boys' room so we shouldn't be worried if he's not in our place. He also says that none of us should go there to see Max with the exception of Kai," Tyson glared at Spencer. " What I want to know is why Max is there in the first place and how come we can't go there. Max IS, technically, part of our team."

" Actually, Tyson, I agree with Spencer. You shouldn't go there."

" WHAT! Not you too, Kenny!"

" I have a reasonable answer! Just listen to me!" Kenny grabbed Tyson's elbow. " Look. If we all go there, it'd be a bit suspicious, considering the fact that besides Kai, none of us ever really went over to the Blitzkrieg Boys, you know."

" So? We could just be like, ' Hey! We wanted to see what you're up to!' Nobody would even mind! It's not like we NEVER talk to them!" Daichi yawned, placing his hands behind his head.

Kenny sighed and wiped his glasses. " It's not that simple, you guys. Just... Just listen to Spencer and don't go there."

" Yeah..." Rei sat down on the bench and took a sip of water. " What if the media decides to follow us to get an interview? We'll be practically leading them to Max."

" Fine." Tyson said in despair and turned towards Spencer. " Just tell us how Max ended up there anyway."

* * *

Rick groaned before pulling himself up. Rubbing his back, he turned his head and looked about the room. Duffel bags littered one corner and bits of beyblade cluttered one whole end of the table in the center. There were a few other sports utilities heaped about the room. He groaned and laid back down on the wooden bench.

How had he gotten here? The most that he could remember was Max and something that ticked him off. Then came the Blitzkrieg Boys and... **_Tala_**... Tala had just came and punched him! He punched him! And that wasn't it! Tala totally pummeled him!

Rick fumed at the thought that someone physically smaller and shorter than him had beaten him in a fight. Afterall... He WAS brought up in a rough atmosphere... He felt his anger rising even more when he thought about how he was not only beaten by Tala but _knocked out as well_. Ooh... This was getting him mad. Real mad. It wasn't everyday that he was defeated in such a pitiful way.

The more he thought about it, the more angry he became. Wait til he meets Tala again... He won't even see anything coming, he'll attack him so swiftly.

It might be unfair but... Tala was unfair as well! He had struck without warning! The battle was unjust! He didn't follow the rules. So! He had won after all...

" MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

He had won after all! Because Tala had cheated! Oh, this was good! This was good!

But...

That Tala! Why'd he attack in the first place?

Rick narrowed his eyes in thought. It was obvious that Tala didn't like him from the beginning and that was why he attacked him. It was a good opportunity. No one was there to stand witness and if he had attacked back, Tala had his fellow team members to back him up.

Ooh... Just wait til he meets Tala again... There was nothing that could prevent a fight between him and Tala. _Nothing_.

* * *

Finally... Like always, I'm open to suggestions! And if there's any information you have about AIDS, please tell me. I did my research and all, but who knows? There might be something I didn't know about yet!

Oh, and there's a reason for Tala suddenly attacking. It was and wasn't supposed to be a random thing thrown in there.


	11. Tala

Yay! Here's the next chapter!

* * *

I don't really have a passion for anything now. Nothing. I feel so drained these days… So lifeless and tired. Like I'm done for. Nothing to live for. But then… I'd be letting all these people down. All these doctors and researchers. My family, my friends. Everyone. It'd be world-wide news, my death. There wouldn't be a person who wouldn't know about it. Oh, wait. There'd be me. 'Cause I'd be dead and no longer conscience of anything. People who I used to hang out with would laugh and talk about all the fun times we had together. People who hated and despised me would feel guilt and regret. Or would they?

One thing's for certain. I'd be gone. Deceased. No longer to live under the constant fear of what would happen after. No more pain. No more nothing. I'd be finally free from everything. All the stress and agony. Everything.

But is that what I really want? Do I really want to end my life this way? As a depressed teenage-angst kid who decided he'd do nothing but mope and cry over his miserable situation for the last remaining moments of his life? Yeah, right. Ask my friends. Ask anybody. They'll all tell you something different. I'm stronger than that. And I'm going to accomplish something before I leave. I'm going to become more than a famous beyblader. I'm going to become a legend.

* * *

"So…" Tala came over and sat down across from Max. "How exactly did Kai find out?"

"Before that, what do you know about me?" Max looked away from Tala and watched the events going on in the television. The fight between Rei and Lee was intense, but it felt far away and distant to him.

Tala smirked. He wasn't going to be fooled that easily. If anything, he learned through experience to keep the other thinking that he knew everything. Don't tell anything specific. Just enough to have the other assume you know everything about them. And… You could pretty much rely upon Kai to know the whole truth.

"It doesn't matter what I know," Tala slightly frowned "I just want to learn how Kai found out."

"Who cares about that," Kai stood at the doorway, Spencer behind him.

"Kai…" Max started. Kai held his hand up and silenced him.

"Just tell him, Max. He's not one to go babbling."

Tala folded his arms and looked towards Max with interest. What was going on in here?

Max gulped then slowly turned his head to look at both Kai and Tala. Was he one to trust? Could he trust him?

"I'm sick."

Tala waited. Sensing no further elaboration from Max, he sighed and stood up. "Alright. I understand. You can stay for the time being. Just try not to run into other people."

The three turned and exited the room, once more leaving Max alone. He sat in silence, the cheers on the television slowly bringing him back to reality. He turned the television onto mute and began to cry silently.

* * *

"TALA, YOU BASTARD!!!" Rick yelled out as he reared his arm back and punched the unsuspecting captain across the face. Immediately, the muscles in Spencer's body tightened as Bryan got ready to fight back. Wiping the small trickle of blood from his mouth, Tala slowly lifted his face to look Rick in the eyes.

"That's for beating me up in the locker room," Rick sneered arrogantly.

"Rick… What are you talking about? He beat you up? For what?" Emily rushed to her teammate's side. "Did you do anything to offend him?"

He laughed. "Yeah, right… I was only talking to M-"

But he never got to finish his sentence. Eyes flashing, Tala quickly acted. Seconds later, Rick was roaring curses at the silhouettes of the Blitzkrieg Boys as Emily looked at him curiously.

"Rick, shut up. What were you about to say just now?" Emily shook Rick in an attempt to snap him out of his fit. He shoved her hands off of him and pointed a trembling finger at Tala.

"That, that, that KID just knocked me down! ROARRRRR!!!!" He stood up roughly and chased after the Blitzkrieg Boys, leaving a small trail of dust behind.

Emily shook her head and went over to greet the other teams. Rick could chase after the Boys and seek revenge as much as he wanted, but she knew that he'd come back whimpering sooner or later. Tala wasn't invincible… But Rick just didn't know how to hold his ground and chose the correct timing. He was just… He only knew how to bad-mouth.

* * *

Tyson grinned as the bus met another bump in the road. They had made another victory and it would be just one more week until the final battle. Max was pretty cheerful today as well. It seemed as if inviting him to a day at the tournament did him some good. Plus, no media or crazy fans asking outrageous questions about Max. He grinned and it passed on to the others in the bus.

As they made their way back towards BBA building, Tyson's grin gradually faded. A bunch of press people were already surrounding the building with cameras already set up. He looked back towards Max, who stared back in horror.

The bus pulled up to the entrance and opened its doors. Instantly, microphones were jammed into the doorway as journalists pelted out questions. Camera lights flashed and people were pressed against the window.

"Hey!" One distinct voice yelled out from among the crowd, "Isn't that Max Tate?"

* * *

Yeah... So I felt a bit guilty for not updating in so long so... Hope everyone enjoyed it!

I think that this one was kinda hard for me to type up. I really didn't like it so I had to keep on retyping it. And I just realized how terribly out of character they all are. Well! As long as everyone enjoyed it!


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